< Previous East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk HEALTH AND SAFETY Incidents fall but costs rise The annual number of incidents in the workplace has fallen in recent years, and yet some of the most common types have remained the same, showing a lack of understanding and willingness to tackle the expensive problem. www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link HEALTH AND SAFETY disputes. Contrastingly, those in retail or healthcare are most at risk from workplace violence as staff are targeted by dissatisfied customers. For workshop or warehouse-based industries, the deadliness of the hazards increases. Electrical hazards, including mishandling of equipment or exposure to live circuits, can cause electrical shocks or burns. Fire and explosion risks arise from insufficient maintenance, flammable materials, or inadequate fire safety measures. Chemical hazards present dangers when workers are exposed to toxic substances without appropriate safety measures or protective equipment. Studies on all the above have identified a chronic lack of training and awareness of safety protocols as being a primary factor in workplace accidents. Furthermore, training awareness is directly proportional to the severity of any accident that may occur. Employers should prioritize addressing these hazards through safety measures, training programs, and fostering a culture of awareness and adherence to safety protocols. Whilst this might seem like a long list of hazards, the good news is that the list remains consistent regardless of industry. This means that a broad approach can be taken to tackling safety concerns in the workplace. To prevent workplace accidents, it is essential to implement several measures. One crucial step is to establish a strong safety culture that prioritizes awareness and accountability among employees. This can be achieved by fostering open communication, encouraging the reporting of hazards or near-miss incidents, and recognizing and rewarding safe behaviours. An online form could be circulated to employees for the reporting of concerns. Online forms ensure that the information reaches the correct individuals, and the data could be anonymised to encourage honesty. Regular safety training is also vital to educate employees about workplace 52 Á T he cost of workplace accidents is some £3 billion to UK businesses; it is infinitely more cost effective to implement some rapid strategies to mitigate the most common risks to employees. Surprisingly, accident types remain consistent regardless of industry. Of course, the prevalence of any specific hazard is dictated by the type of workplace – for example, heavy machinery and electrical equipment are less typically found in a traditional office environment. It must be acknowledged that certain industries carry an inherent risk of harm to staff, with the top scoring industries being construction, manufacturing, and transportation. Employees in these fields are most at risk from harm due to falling objects, injuries from heavy or incorrect lifting, and chemical exposures. Alarmingly, those in healthcare are also at significant risk of harm. Workers face exposure to threatening behaviour, sharp and hazardous objects, and ergonomic strains from patient handling daily. Despite this, the most common (and costly) causes of harm to employees could happen in any setting. Slips, trips, and falls commonly occur due to factors like wet surfaces, uneven floors, or obstructions in walkways. Manual handling and lifting activities can lead to musculoskeletal injuries if proper training and techniques are not provided. Accidents involving machinery and equipment can result from inadequate training, misuse, or equipment malfunctions, leading to severe injuries such as crushes or amputations. Falling objects pose a risk in environments where items are stored at heights or during construction work. Ergonomic factors, such as poorly designed workstations or repetitive tasks, can lead to musculoskeletal disorders. These are commonly identified within sedentary environments such as offices. Furthermore, these are silent but dangerous issues that can develop over time, costing more in time off work and medical costs than most other workplace East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk HEALTH AND SAFETY hazards, safety protocols, and proper equipment usage. Ongoing risk assessments should be conducted to identify potential dangers and take appropriate measures to mitigate them. Whilst generic risk assessments are useful for identifying common pitfalls, for industries which require the use of specialist equipment or professional skills, risk assessments must be tailored to consider these cases. Maintaining a clean and organized workspace, providing, and enforcing the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), and promoting ergonomic practices should be standard according to experts. Office-based businesses may consider open offices, rising desks, and hotdesking to encourage employees to keep moving, thus mitigating the risk of ergonomic injury. Furthermore, regular breaks (including eye breaks, where computer users look away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes) and task rotation should be encouraged to prevent tiredness and headaches, which can further contribute to accidents. Regular equipment maintenance and inspections are essential to minimize the risk of malfunctions. It is also crucial to develop and communicate emergency response plans, conduct drills, and provide first aid training to ensure preparedness. Lastly, promoting mental health and well-being through support systems and initiatives can help prevent accidents caused by distractions or emotional distress. By implementing these measures, workplaces can create a safer environment and protect the well- being of their employees. One must remember that ensuring workplace safety is a continuous endeavour that demands consistent monitoring, assessment, and enhancement. It is important to regularly review and revise safety policies, actively engage employees in safety-related decision-making processes, and stay abreast of the latest industry standards and regulations. Regular assessment helps to identify the early stages of, and thus prevent, major hazards. Furthermore, considering any unique needs of particular employees helps create a safe environment for all. The provision of a safe and healthy workplace has been shown to boost employee morale and increase productivity. Businesses that operate on a remote basis should consider conducting remote safety training, wherein an assessor can review home workspaces. This will reduce the likelihood of accidents happening in the home and will provide employees with an opportunity to ask for additional resources, such as keyboard risers. At- home risk assessments could then be completed by employees. © stock.adobe.com/Andrey PopovFEATURES Design & Marketing Engineering IT & Telecommunications Business Spotlight Apprenticeships REGULARS Commercial Property Motoring Corporate Hospitality Watch out too for the latest news from across the region in every sector Next month in July 2023 - Deadline 21st June Visit us at www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk where you’ll find the latest news as it breaks – and why not subscribe to our newsletters so you can have the latest news emailed to your inboxOUT OF OFFICE Nottingham’s architectural community forms charity champions league Architecture firms in Nottingham have joined forces to launch the Nottingham Architects’ Charity League (NACL) – a not-for-profit organisation aiming to raise as much money as possible for local charities through a fun annual competition. Kick-starting the league was a bowling competition, with eight architectural teams of six taking part, each competing for the highest score to raise more money for their partner charities. Ahmed Elamin, director of the NACL and architectural designer at Marchini Curran Associates, said: “The basis of forming the NACL was always about local architects supporting local charities. The vital funds raised will have a real-world impact on the lives of people in Nottingham. Bringing the industry together to create a more connected future, we are excited to launch the NACL annual event and feel honoured that this organisation can help charities in the region. We thank the generosity of everyone involved and all of our sponsors and look forward to the future of the NACL.” Derbyshire science firm helps engineering charity carry on solving problems to help those with disabilities Scientists at a Derbyshire firm are helping out fellow engineers who have left the world of work and are now using their skills to help people with disabilities by making free bespoke aids. Through its charities and communities committee, Lubrizol – whose UK headquarters is based at Hazelwood near Belper – has once more given annual financial support to the highly innovative charity Remap, which makes specialist aids provided free to people with disabilities. Remap’s skilful volunteers are mainly engineers who like nothing better than to find solutions for people with disabilities who are having a specific problem for which there is no commercial solution. Over the years, Remap’s volunteers have kept their brains and hands busy coming up with a series of brilliant one-off devices to help people, including a book page- turner for children in Royal Derby Hospital who were in wheelchairs and not able to use their hands; a fork holder to help someone cut meat, who previously did not have that ability, and a specially built swimming pool staircase for a girl with a motor impairment who had become too heavy for her mother to carry. Mike Banks, a former Rolls-Royce engineer who now volunteers his skills with Derby, Burton & District Remap, said: “Engineers like nothing more than a challenge and then to solve it. If that challenge is going to restore a capability to a disabled person, then it’s three times as pleasurable!” East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk Cawarden answers the King’s call to help out As part of the Kings Coronation celebration, Derby-based Specialist Contractor Cawarden participated in The Big Help Out, an initiative designed to encourage volunteering and help local communities. In Derby city centre, Cawarden made a generous donation of its people and equipment to help out at Wilmorton Community Gardens for the YMCA Derbyshire, the custodian of the gardens. As part of the YMCA Derbyshire’s master plan, a large structure within the gardens had to be demolished. Therefore, Matt Taylor, youth and community manager at YMCA Derbyshire enlisted the help of the demolition experts at Cawarden. The structure had been a problem for some time and had delayed progress within the gardens, so Cawarden offered to provide a 7-tonne machine and an experienced operator to demolish it free of charge. Now that the demolition work has been completed, a new eco-sustainability area will be created on the site, with potential plots, forest areas, and learning centres that will provide opportunities for environmental engagement for all ages to get involved. Matt Taylor (pictured left), youth and community manager at YMCA Derbyshire, enlisted the help of the demolition experts at Cawarden to pave the way for a new eco-sustainability area Ahmed Elamin, director of the NACL and architectural designer at Marchini Curran Associates Local businesspeople become ambassadors for Safe and Sound Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has recruited more local people to help raise awareness of the dangers facing vulnerable children and young people. Entrepreneurs Persha Ward and Nadia Jane Asamoah as well as University of Derby lecturer Bev Crighton and marketing specialist Claire Morrison have become official ambassadors for the charity. They join the existing team of ambassadors: Derbyshire actor Molly Windsor, local business woman Amanda Strong and child exploitation survivor Louise Murphy-Fairclough. Safe and Sound Chief Executive Tracy Harrison said: “Our ambassadors have an important role in our work to raise awareness of the dangers facing children and young people both online and in our local communities. “Talking about child sexual exploitation is not an easy conversation but our ambassadors doing an incredible job to spread the word about the issue and the work of Safe and Sound in their own networks.” OUT OF OFFICE www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link Annual charity bunkers challenge reaches £35k of £100k target Now in its third year, the annual three bunkers challenge has raised £35,000 of its £100,000 target, and with further donations still being pledged organisers hope this year’s £40k target will be achieved. The 2023 challenge was held on Friday 26 May and involved teams from six East Midlands businesses completing 27 holes of golf on three golf courses in Derby, Leicester and Nottingham. Organised by Bev Cook from Simple Marketing Consultancy, the teams taking part this year were from Shakespeare Martineau, Macildowie Recruitment & Retention, MKM Building Supplies, Fiscal Engineers and Breeze Corporate Finance. Each team recorded the best two scores from Morley Hayes, Charnwood Forest and The Nottinghamshire and had any bunker shots deducted from their final score. The winning team was Simple Marketing Consultancy represented by Bob Johnson, Jon Steel, Paul Pownall and Bev Cook. Commenting on the challenge, James Taylor from Macildowies said: “Whilst we took the golf seriously, the most pleasing part was being able to raise money for Big C Little C and help the event get closer to its overall fundraising target.” Living Without Abuse charity awarded £14,840 for office refurb Local charity, Living Without Abuse (LWA), is celebrating after being awarded almost £15,000 in funding from the Severn Trent Community Fund to refurbish their Loughborough and Leicester offices. LWA supports victims of Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. The funds will enable LWA to provide its hardworking staff with areas for mental wellbeing and relaxation, as well as a welcoming safe space for clients escaping trauma. LWA has offered domestic abuse services since 1977 and is made up of paid staff and volunteers who provide a range of services to the local community, whilst managed by a team of volunteer Trustee Directors. The charity actively works to tackle the issues of domestic abuse head-on, whilst raising awareness and hosting numerous events and campaigns each year to support more victims. L-R: Molly Windsor, Claire Morrison, Louise Murphy-Fairclough, Tracy Harrison, Nadia Jane Asamoah, Bev Crighton and Amanda Strong © stock.adobe.com/ RZ Team captains: Les Bratton, Graeme Gladstone, James Taylor, Colin Shaw, Andrew Springhall, Bev Cook, Ed Wright, Rhys Wyborne East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk of Good Work policy and practice. For more information visit www.businesslincolnshire.com/events/ event-details/ ?id=4218&navigatedFromSearch=true STEP Gainsborough Event Wednesday 14 June Trinity Arts Centre, Gainsborough The STEP prototype fusion energy plant has a home at the West Burton site. If you’d like to find out more about the STEP programme and meet the team, please come along. There will also be a showcase of the very first, very draft masterplan. The masterplan shows the team’s initial thoughts on the layout of the site as it develops in the decades ahead, and they want your views and area knowledge to help inform these plans going forward. There will also be a session on future supplier opportunities and HR Essentials for SMEs Tuesday 13 June Harborough Innovation Centre, Market Harborough This full day action planning workshop explores common HR headaches across the employee lifecycle. For more information visit https://bizgateway.org.uk/events/hr- essentials-for-smes-13-june/ Midlands Good Work Summit Wednesday 14 June NTU Events and Conferencing, Nottingham Supported by the Midlands Engine and co-hosted by the Advisory, Conciliation & Arbitration Service (ACAS) and Nottingham Trent University (NTU), the first Midlands Good Work Summit will be a great opportunity for regional businesses, trade unions and research communities to meet and exchange ideas on the development events timeframes with UKAEA’s strategic procurement lead. For more information visit www.businesslincolnshire.com/ events/event-details/ ?id=4224&navigatedFromSearch=true Selecting the Right Social Media for Your Business Thursday 15 June Rushcliffe Arena, Nottingham Social media is ever present in society. Using it as a business is a great way to engage with your target audience in a cost-effective way. But the landscape is vast. The amount of content available is huge. Do you really need to post all the time and on every platform? This session will look at the main social platforms available, their key functionality and who uses them so that you can decide where to focus your attention and become a more efficient user of social media for your business. For more information visit www.d2n2growthhub.co.uk/events/selecti ng-the-right-social-media-for-your- business-2/ Blogging with Authority and Trust Thursday 22 June Friars Mill Business Centre, Leicester Blogging for business is much more than writing an update on the company or repurposing a newsletter. Not only can it improve your website’s overall performance but it can set you apart from your competition, positioning you as an organisation with knowledge, expertise and great service. But what do you blog about? Who should author the content and how can you use the content as a springboard to generating more leads and closing business? This action planning workshop will look at the different elements of blogging for business: what to write about, how frequently and how to ensure it doesn’t just sit there doing nothing. For more information visit https://bizgateway.org.uk/events/blogging-with-authority-and-trust-22-june/ © stock.adobe.com/Vitalii Vodolazskyi © stock.adobe.com/undreywww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link Lincolnshire Construction & Property Network June Tuesday 20 June Everyman Lincoln, Lincoln Meet up to 60 construction related businesses in one room and hear from guest speakers, Jef Todd, business development manager at Lindum Group Ltd, and Kevin Kendall, head of property at Lincolnshire Coop. This month’s network will celebrate the Cornhill area of Lincoln’s city centre as well as future projects taking place in the area. Included in the network is a walking tour of the Cornhill Quarter which will include the Bus Station, Lincoln Central Car Park, Barbican, Lincoln Central Market, Corn Exchange, and Sincil Street so sensible footwear is advised. For more information visit www.lincs-chamber.co.uk/ events/lincolnshire-construction-property-network-june/ Successful SEO Wednesday 21 June Best Western Plus, Lee Wood Hotel, Buxton If you want to outrank your competitors and get more free traffic from Google, this is the workshop for you! From choosing the right target keywords to getting other websites to link to yours, you will learn all about search engine optimisation (SEO) and how to use the techniques on your own site. For more information visit www.d2n2growthhub.co.uk/events/successful-seo/ East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023 Thursday 28 September Trent Bridge Cricket Ground, Nottingham The East Midlands Bricks Awards are back for 2023! Shining a light on the region’s property and construction industry, this year’s event will take place on Thursday 28 September at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground in Nottingham. The East Midlands Bricks Awards, organised by East Midlands Business Link Magazine, is an independent awards and publicity programme recognising development projects and people in commercial and public building across the region – from office, industrial and residential schemes, through to community projects such as leisure schemes and schools. With the economy now recovering after lockdown, and following a successful event held last year, we believe it is now more important than ever to celebrate the robustness of the property industry in our region. For more information, to submit a nomination, or buy tickets visit www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk/mag/bricks-2023/ Building a Mentally Healthy Workplace Wednesday 21 June Mansfield Innovation Centre, Mansfield In 2021/ 22 an estimated 17 million working days were lost due to work-related stress, depression or anxiety in Britain. This workshop will take a holistic view of stress to understand the different causes that go far beyond just looking at tight deadlines and workplace conflicts. It will look under the surface of stress to give you a much richer understanding of the topic so that you can understand your own behaviours and the behaviour of others in your team. For more information visit www.d2n2growthhub.co.uk/events/building-a-mentally-healthy-workplace/ Here’s Frazer’s collection of the weird and wonderful ‘news’ that came his way over the last few weeks. And finally The world of Frazer 58 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk Bouncy castle bust How can a business outshine the competition to become the go- to choice for customers? Well, it shouldn’t be through arson, that’s for certain. Frazer would think this be common sense, but a recent email from a colleague containing a peculiar piece of news shows this is not the case! The owner of a bouncy castle business has been sentenced with 11 years in prison after ordering a string of arson attacks against his rivals in the party hire equipment sector. Investigators said that the man was completely fixated on ensuring the success of his company and was willing to go to extreme lengths to fight off his competitors. In an attempt to ward off suspicion, he even ordered an arson attack on his own factory. Awesome Party Hire was clearly not so awesome after all. Flatulent barrister wins £135,000 A ‘farting barrister’ who unsuccessfully sued the Crown Prosecution Service for harassment has won £135,000 after his request to work from home was blocked. An employment tribunal heard how asking the barrister to stop passing gas violated his dignity, due to being a result of a medication. While the tribunal found it was a reasonable request of his colleague to make, because of the size of their office and the repetitive nature of the flatulence, £135,862 was awarded in compensation by not making reasonable adjustments to help him manage his condition. A real page-turner Reading can be a splendid way of relaxing after work, a way to get lost in a different world. But with hundreds of new works of fiction and non-fiction seemingly being released every day, with what book does one begin? Well, does Frazer have a treat for you, dear reader, after stumbling across a piece of art from a bank’s head of legal — a bizarre book of financial fairy tales. Providing a twist to classic stories to ensure they all relate to a financial setting, including scams and crises, 25 adaptations have been published in a collection, whether you’re in the mood for ‘Gullible’s Investments’, ‘Little Red Account Balance (and The Big Bad Wolf of Wall Street)’, ‘Cinderasset’ or ‘Reponzel’. Who wouldn’t want to know how Sin-Bad the Bond Salesman sails the Sea of Ponzi and visits Short-sellers Island to become a star investment banker? © stock.adobe.com/ bnenin © stock.adobe.com/Manny DaCunha © stock.adobe.com/ AnnekeEast Midlands Business Link Bricks 2023 A celebration of those helping to create the landscape for the next generation EAST MIDLANDS The prestigious East Midlands Bricks Awards are back for 2023! Shining a light on the region’s property and construction industry, this year’s event will take place on Thursday 28th September, at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground. The East Midlands Bricks Awards, organised by East Midlands Business Link Magazine, is an independent awards and publicity programme recognising development projects and people in commercial and public building across the region – from office, industrial and residential schemes, through to community projects such as leisure schemes and schools. Visit www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk for more information. BUSINESSNext >